He Makes Me Laugh
by PunkInuzuka
Summary: Temari was a harsh, clever woman, but she loved for simple reasons. [NaruTema]
1. The Beginning

_He Makes Me Laugh_

Temari was a harsh, clever woman, but she loved for simple reasons.

 **Notes:** For some reason I'm still stuck on NaruTema and since my last one was back in 1 billion BC here's everyone's favourite pair of bisexuals fallin' in love. Not gonna be more than a couple chapters.

 **Edit:** Minor tweaks as of 2018, but I did write this years ago so.

* * *

Between delivering messages from Kage to Kage, liaison politics, and council meetings, Temari made friends with Yamanaka Ino. On the way back from the Hokage Tower and towards her hotel, Temari would find herself stopping by the Yamanaka Flower Shop, touching flowers as she told Ino of her hobby, and Ino encouraged her to come again and again. This was a wonderful time for Temari, but sometimes there was someone else with them; Nara Shikamaru.

Temari's visits were always curt, short things when Shikamaru was involved. She went in, she saw Shikamaru, and her mood was soured by his complaints about his mother, his job, even Ino herself, right to her face. Ino never seemed to mind, doing nothing more than tell him off for it, but Temari didn't like it at all. She would direct all her attention to the gorgeous flowers Ino tended for, to Ino's bright, compassionate kindness and her warm friendship, and she would ignore Shikamaru completely. Whenever he attempted to speak to her, she would give him a frosty look, then purposely look away. She tried to make him feel as unwelcome as possible.

Probably due to Ino's gentle nature, she worried about Temari's attitude towards her team-mate. "He's a good man, you know!" She would tell her earnestly.

"Then you pay him all the attention you desire," Temari would allow, with a nod, and then she'd watch as Ino spluttered and turned red, obviously embarrassed. Temari had had no friends in her youth; only hunger. Hunger for food, for a better life for her people, for Suna to prosper. Ino had never known such things, and she was so much softer than Temari ever could be for it.

And she could grow such pretty, delicate flowers. Temari stroked a lily with the back of her finger. "Why don't you like him? You saved him once," Ino pointed out. It probably bothered her, young as she was, that her friends couldn't get along. It didn't bother Temari, five years her senior, that her acquaintances tended to hate her brother. Not Gaara; Kankuro. The trickster didn't lose at cards easily.

Temari didn't know how to properly explain Suna Pride; how it was better to die in battle than to be spared, how it was dishonourable to admit defeat… how Shikamaru had utterly, totally humiliated her, in front of her _brothers_ , no less, in front of her teacher, all the family she had, by defeating her in a battle of wits when life was on the line. Temari had saved him to save her pride as a soldier of Suna. She had wanted no more whispers about her supposed softness as she stood by her brothers; Nothing more.

Instead, she rubbed some of the lily's pot dirt between her fingers, and said, quietly; "I can do my job, regardless of personal grievances."

"Was he rude to you?" Ino pressed, full of concern, full of friendship. "I'll make him sorry, don't you worry! Just tell me!"

Temari looked at her, and Ino met her gaze, her fist clenched, passionate. She had meant every word. Temari looked away. The sister of a devil and a trickster had no right to be giving Yamanaka Ino this kind of worry.

"Sometimes, these things…" She began, then stopped. She let out a breath. "I am stubborn. I am a stubborn person. You must leave me to my stubbornness, Ino."

Ino swung herself over the counter, walked up to her, and hugged her. Temari's breath caught. This was the third time someone had embraced her that she remembered. First was Gaara, hesitant, whispering sorry over and over again until she wept. Right after that it was Kankuro, his shoulders shaking, as Gaara wished them both goodnight and they knew they would have nothing to fear from him tonight, for the first time in their lives.

And now Ino, kind Ino, pretty Ino, full of love, who knew nothing of starving or being starved of anything, saw fit to so much as touch her. Temari didn't cry, but she did, slowly, hug her back.

After that afternoon, things between her and Ino were better than ever. She would see her on her way to whatever she was assigned to do, and she would stop by on her way back, no matter what the hour, and Ino would invite her into her house and up to her room. She had met Ino's father only once; Ino must have seen how white she'd turned, her stark, naked terror of meeting an older man who tried to touch her, however casually meant. She never saw him in Ino's house again.

Tonight, she'd had a boring meeting on trade route agreements- again -and been forced to stay late; she would have been later, if she hadn't realised that the Hokage had no idea that a sand worm was a massive, carnivorous underground creature, and absolutely nothing like the little wiggly things Ino put in mulch. She explained this to Ino, as the other woman happily shook up a bottle of nail polish and inspected Temari's toes.

"Really? That sounds like a horror movie! I think I've even heard of one just like that!" Ino exclaimed, looking cowed.

Temari nibbled the rice cracker Ino had shoved into her hands, to keep her from showing Ino how the little toe on her left foot could bend funny because she'd broken it as a child. "That sounds true. They are quite scary. My brother, he has worm fang knives; they are very expensive, and he claims they cost him half a year's worth of pay."

"But?" Ino prompted, eyes glimmering, as she started painting clear polish onto Temari's big toe.

"But my brother forgets, sometimes, that his older sister knows him. He trusts no poison he has not made himself, and worm fangs stay toxic, even in death."

Ino's mouth dropped open, and she gasped appropriately. Temari nodded sagely; she, too, did not put it past Kankuro to go out, hunt down a 200 metre beast, and slay it, just because of his own paranoia. He was also a miser with his money.

"What colour do you want? I was thinking either a dark purple or red, to go with your dress," Ino explained, holding up five different bottles. "Your skin is so dark and tan; these'll look really good on you!"

Temari, born and raised on the sands of the desert, shrugged. "I leave it to you, my friend. You are the expert."

Temari chewed her cracker and Ino painted her toes, practicing her pedicures. Sometimes Temari leaned too far over to watch and got crumbs on her own feet, which Ino would yell about and tell her off for. It was great fun. Temari had never had such a feminine, beautiful friend before. Temari had been surrounded by Suna men all her life; indulging in this was something so foreign to her she could barely comprehend it, but she didn't hate it.

As she started on the other foot, Ino finally spoke again, in a tone that caught Temari's attention. "… Shikamaru said he saw you with Naruto today."

Temari nodded. She _had_ been with Naruto today; he was learning Hokage duties, and she was also teaching him the spoken language of Suna, since he had asked her to. He wanted to talk with Gaara better.

Ino shifted, uncomfortable; she was about to do something she didn't want to. "Y'know, Shikamaru, he's a really smart guy." Was it bringing up her Nara team-mate, a topic that Temari found distasteful? "And, Naruto, well, I love the guy, don't get me wrong, but…" Maybe it was speaking negatively of the young man who always surprised them all? "And you're so _smart_ , Temari, like Shikamaru-"

Temari held up a hand, humming her understanding. Ino fell silent, looking guilty. "I suppose you think it would make more sense, yes, if a clever woman were to talk with a clever man?" Ino nodded, looking up at her intently. "… Shikamaru is not the smartest man I've ever met," Temari said, mildly.

Ino looked like she was dying to ask. She even opened her mouth, until Temari gave her a swift _look_. It was the cold, furious gaze she used when she was tired of having to talk about Shikamaru; the look that let Ino know that she did not want to hear Temari talk anymore.

Ino sighed, deflated slightly, and went back to her toes. This conversation wasn't over.

—

And indeed it was not, because Ino invited her out to lunch the next time she was in Konoha- to finally sign and agree on the trade route debacle -and gave her her own look; one that let Temari know she was going to have to spill, and spill _everything_ , or else. Ino was such an impressive woman like that.

They got through perusing the menu and ordering without a fuss; Temari even got a few sips of some iced coffee Ino assured her was really good, before Ino cleared her throat, clasped her hands together, and leaned in.

"Look; I know you don't like Shikamaru. I get it."

"You do not," Temari corrected her, recalling the doe-eyed look Ino would give him when she was sure he wasn't looking.

"I get _you_ , so I get it, okay! But why don't you even give him a chance? You two would totally get along! And you'd have interesting conversations and a partner who can actually keep up with your intellect- and I _know_ you're super-smart, Temari, so don't even try it -and, like, I know Naruto's a good guy and he helped your brother and all, but why _him_ and never Shikamaru?"

Temari took another mouthful of her drink. She really didn't want to talk about this; not because it was Ino, but because Ino was of Konoha, and not Suna. Like the Hokage, she didn't have the base understanding. "Ino, my brother was a monster."

"I know."

"You do not," She said again, voice hard. "We tried to kill him, you know. Ever since he was six years old. Again and again. I would watch men creep through my house, knowing that they were going to try to kill that little boy who lived with me, and I would wish them all the luck in the world. He has always been so small. When he was born, my father could cradle him in one hand."

Her voice was barely a whisper now, but surrounded by din and civilians, Ino heard her clearly. "And Naruto… he erased that. My living nightmare. My lifelong terror. Gone. I have another little brother; a _real_ little brother. He is small and shy and he loves me as I love him. He is my family." She swallowed, surprised to find it difficult. She didn't speak for a few moments, and Ino allowed it. "… I owe Uzumaki Naruto the world, Ino, because that is what he has given me."

"Temari…" Ino obviously didn't know what to say. She had no base understanding, and it was one of the things Temari loved her for. "I'm sorry."

Temari shrugged. "There is no fault. Your heart is too big, my friend."

Ino smiled ruefully at her. Shikamaru did not love her back; he loved Temari, who loved Ino, who loved Shikamaru through everything. Temari smiled back.

—

What she didn't tell Ino was that she didn't stay in a hotel when she was in Konoha; she stayed in Naruto's apartment. It was tiny and horrible and it smelled like ramen broth, no matter how often Temari forced the tiny window open. Naruto would take the couch and Temari would sleep in his bed that smelled like him, even if she changed the sheets. He never came back into the bedroom when Temari turned in for the night, because he knew that there was no word in Suna for 'pyjamas' and he'd never dream of walking in on her nude. He could only make toast for breakfast, so that's what Temari would eat every morning.

Naruto loved to talk, and Temari was more than clever enough to be able to half-pay attention while she skimmed whatever papers she needed to. Sometimes, he would talk until he tired himself out, and fall asleep right next to her on the couch, and if his head fell on her shoulder, or in her lap; well, it wasn't a guest's place to boss their host around. Sometimes, she would (terribly) make him a typical Suna meal, and he would choke down burnt, too-spicy meat with nothing more than a watery smile of thanks.

Sometimes they ate out. Naruto would take her, without fail, to Ichiraku's Stand, and Temari would order whatever he did and eat it without complaint. Temari would take him to a tiny restaurant she'd found that specialised in Suna cuisine; she'd taken to calling the proprietor 'auntie' and Naruto would still tear up from the spices when he tried whatever she'd ordered, but he'd still try it none-the-less.

Naruto wasn't half as clever as she was, and he would gasp and exclaim in awe over any show of how smart she could be. It was more than flattering. But what he lacked in political know-how and number savvy, he more than made up for in his ability to talk; Temari had never been left wanting for interesting, humorous conversation with Naruto, because he had a gift with people Temari could gasp and exclaim in awe over. They often found themselves staring in surprise at a lightening sky, having spent the whole night laughing on his threadbare couch.

Temari was a neat person, but Naruto wasn't, and she would often wrinkle her nose at the dirty underwear and empty food containers he left around. But Naruto was so very good with people, and when one day Temari noticed that the rubbish bin and laundry basket were both full, she noticed how used to his home she was. Sometimes she didn't come to Konoha; sometimes it was Kankuro, and sometimes she would find a half-finger glove that was too big for her in the drawer Naruto put aside for her.

It wasn't exactly a secret. The rate of common-law partnerships was almost three times that of legal marriage in Suna, so there was no cultural shame she felt in staying, unattached, in an equally unattached man's home. But, for some reason, she didn't particularly want Ino to know. None of his cohort in Konoha knew that sometimes he came home to Temari wearing one of his shirts and sitting in her underwear on his couch, hair down, furiously annotating a highly classified document. If Temari didn't want Ino to know, she absolutely loathed the thought of anyone else in his little group being aware of her sleeping arrangements, even if his cute little team-mate once saved her brother's life.

Still, she should have expected that one day, someone would walk in to her wearing a pair of her shorts and his black-and-orange jacket while she waited for two minutes by one of his ramen cups. She should've been more grateful it was only his team-mate.

"Temari!" Haruno Sakura exclaimed, looking about as shocked as people often were when it dawned on them the tiny redhead was the real leader of Temari's team.

"Haruno," She said, somewhat stiffly, acutely aware of the fact she wasn't wearing a shirt. She zipped the jacket up.

"Uh, what're you- eh-hem, making? Late lunch?" Temari was surprised by the amount of tact she displayed, given that Ino and Naruto had little to none at all.

"Yes. Are those the documents I gave the Hokage earlier?" She already knew they were. Naruto had left a ring of coffee on one corner that she could plainly see.

Sakura nodded, eyes quickly assessing the situation. Unlike Naruto, it seemed to concern her much more that Temari was a highly-skilled and more experienced kunoichi in her team mate's home. She wondered if she should just tell the other woman that she wasn't having sex with her best friend, but, given the fact she had grabbed his jacket in lieu of her shirt, it might not look too plausible.

"He is washing," Temari said to her. She knew the other woman couldn't just leave those documents for him, especially not with Temari, who made to benefit or not on what they contained. "You will sit?"

"Yes, thank you," She said quickly, and did so. The timer beeped, and Temari pulled the lid off, stirring the noodles up. She liked to add some extra carrot, and Naruto made sure that the seafood-flavoured ones had a little picture of a fish or something on the packaging, and only ate them out on the balcony. Temari hated seafood.

She didn't know what else to say to Sakura, so she said nothing, which was obviously the wrong thing to not say, since the woman was looking more uncomfortable by the second. Temari hated to eat in front of people she didn't know or wasn't fighting beside, so she stirred and waited for her noodles to cool. Sakura asked a few questions; 'how long are you staying?' 'Are your brothers well?' 'How are you finding Konoha by now?', while absolutely avoiding asking why the Hell she was wearing Naruto's jacket in his apartment. Temari was impressed by such polite conversation in the face of such adversary.

Still, the sound of Naruto clattering out of the shower, whistling obnoxiously, rang loudly through the tension in the room. Temari felt a little more relaxed herself when Naruto came in, still wet and dripping and in nothing but a towel. She let him take the chopsticks from her, more than happy to slurp up a large mouthful and even lick the sticks clean. He dumped them back into the container, clearly expecting that Temari would use them (she would), and finally noticed his team-mate.

"Sakura! Whoa, what're you _doing_ here?!" He looked thrilled, and happily began to chatter away at her, wandering out of the room, his voice raising, and then coming back out wearing a singlet and a pair of boxers. Temari, pointedly, took her container at that point and went into his bedroom to eat. She still heard their conversation clearly, since Naruto's shitty apartment had paper-thin walls.

" _Man, I haven't seen you since last week! You want some ramen? I only have seafood flavour, though; and we'll have to eat it, like, out on the balcony, 'coz Temari really hates the smell-"_

A chair was scraped back. _"Naruto, what the Hell! She's like, four years older than us!"_ Sakura had asked her how old she was during her last visit, in July.

" _Nah, only three,"_ Naruto corrected her. _"What the Hell? 'What the hell' what? What?"_ Naruto was rooting around in his cupboards, the doors opening a closing, drawers being pulled out and pushed back in.

" _Why is she here? Is she- y'know? Are you seeing her, or something?"_

The stove was switched on. Plastic rustled. _"No. Why would you think that?"_

" _She's wearing your jacket."_

" _She hasn't got any thicker clothes."_ Water, left over from Temari's cup, was being poured. _"She just stays with me when she's here. Why do you care? Do you-?!"_

"No _, Naruto."_ Temari remembered her own noodles as she heard the timer being twisted, and levied up a mouthful, finding the temperature agreeable.

Naruto groaned loudly, and then let out an indignant 'oww!' when something flimsy wobbled and snapped. Sakura must have hit him the documents. _"Why are you letting her stay here, Naruto?"_

" _What, was I supposed to say no? I offered! She's Gaara's big sister!"_

Sakura sighed, obviously annoyed. _"It's suspicious, Naruto."_

"You're _suspicious!"_ he sounded outraged. The thought of Temari having ulterior motives, naturally, had never occurred to him. He trusted easily and forgave even easier.

" _It's just- are you being safe? Careful?"_

" _She's not an enemy, Sakura! It's Temari! She's our ally!"_

" _She's from Suna first."_

Naruto slammed a drawer. _"Whatever. What's that, anyway?"_

Sakura, after a moment, began reluctantly speaking about the documents, lowering her voice. Temari ignored their conversation after that, fairly certain she wouldn't come up again. She stayed in his bedroom as they talked about other things; the son of the White Fang, their cohort. She was somewhat disappointed Ino never came up. She'd been on a mission all through Temari's stay here, and she missed her.

Temari lounged in his bed for two hours as they chatted, watching the scenery outside his bedroom window (that didn't have any curtains and woke her up at the crack of dawn every day). She didn't come up again, as she'd predicted, but she replayed his obvious dislike at her questions, the sound of him slamming the drawer shut. She tried to place it and, finally, decided that it was something like fondness.

The room was bathed in a pinkish hue when Naruto saw his team-mate off at the door. It was a bit darker when he knocked on the door of the bedroom and called out; "Temari, you turned in yet?" Politely asking if she was clothed or not.

"No," She said, and he opened the door. They watched each other for a moment. He broke her stare and came in, walking towards her empty cup.

He picked it up and stood there for a moment. "Sorry about Sakura. She's just doing her job."

"She is the Hokage's apprentice."

He laughed in that 'oh yeah' way she noticed he had. "I mean, looking out for me."

"I see." Naruto had never been so quiet before. It must bother him, knowing his friends still didn't quite trust one another. She didn't like it, so she stood, her forehead reaching his mouth. The famine of Suna in her childhood seemed to dictate that she would never grow tall; though she did have half a head on most women in Konoha. "Look at me."

His gaze left the empty cup in his hands and their eyes met. He had very beautiful eyes. Not even Ino had eyes so blue and so bright. She reached up, slowly, and held onto his ears. He looked somewhat baffled, and she had to laugh, quietly, and his puzzlement melted into a good-humoured smile. Naruto was a man full of good humour. She had to pull him down by his ears and press her laughing mouth to his smile, just for that.


	2. A Start

_He Makes Me_ _Laugh_

 **Notes:** Thank you for all your kind words! Gosh. This chapter's a bit longer so enjoy!

* * *

For a while, nothing more happened. She had laughingly kissed his smiling mouth, and he hadn't rejected her; only stopped smiling just long enough to kiss her back properly. Acutely aware of the difference between them, she didn't push any more of her affections on him. He still slept on the couch and wouldn't enter his bedroom after she wished him goodnight.

But he stood closer. When she sternly told him to brush his teeth, he'd press his side up against hers more freely than before. He was nonchalant to brush arms when they were both trying to make something in his tiny kitchen. Instead of leaving her alone completely when she went to his room at night, sometimes he'd knock and ask if she had turned in yet; and if she said no, he might come in, and sit and talk with her a while, even if they'd spent all afternoon on his couch, knees touching, engrossed in conversation.

Temari liked it. She felt… heady; slightly giddy, slightly confused, over the attention he paid her now. He seemed to be nervous as well; he would fidget, his cheeks would warm, and sometimes he'd get tongue-tied. His gift for talking was useless if he couldn't even get the words out! He was fumbling with this as much as she was. Temari didn't have his gift with people; despite their age gap, she had no more experience than he did. No one was interested in the Kazekage's daughter, or the jinchuuriki's sister.

It was a good thing, too, that Naruto had his brilliant way with people. It didn't take him more than a week to gather his thoughts and be able to put them into words for her.

He got takeout from the Suna restaurant she frequented, telling her 'auntie says hello!' and inviting her to eat with him on his tiny balcony. The bars were wide, and they could both slide their legs through them, Temari resting her forehead against the railing as they chatted about their days. She would be leaving in a week. He had taken five of Sakura's punches before he'd felt the need for medical attention; an improvement from his prior four. The way he stared at her as they talked… she was glad she had no reserves about maintaining eye contact, because she enjoyed it immensely.

It was the first time she could recall seeing such hungry eyes in his bright face. It was different from the hunger she'd seen in her own growing up; he was starved of something more than food.

Their conversation had paused as they watched each other. She waited as he wet his lips and, shyly, he confessed. "… Temari, I like you."

Her eyes half-closed as she heard that, her focus narrowing until there was only him. Her heart thudded loudly, and she savoured his words. It was better than anything she'd ever tasted maybe; it was like Gaara's nervous hug, like Kankuro's glove in her space, but it was all Naruto. She let out a slow breath, and realised she'd been basking in it too long; he looked frightened, nervous, like a little boy.

She smiled at him, and for once didn't bother to try and make her jagged teeth look presentable. She reached out and cupped his face, rubbing her thumb against the three scars under her hands. She gave him a brisk nod and a pleased; "Yes." She didn't have his way with words.

"Yes?!" He asked, just to make sure, his whole face lighting up. She smiled a little wider. His face split into one of his marvellous, glowing grins, and she let out a loud bark of laughter when he tackled her around the middle to hug.

After that, things were even better. One night, he took his jacket off and put it around her shoulders, then snuffled at her arm, like her brother's Inuzuka friend, as if his scent on her pleased him. He was working, in her opinion, too late and too seriously one night, so she pulled out all her ponytails and tried to recreate her hairstyle with his short locks, and laughed at it until he did, too. On the night before she left again, he moped and moped, so she got him to lay down on his bed with her.

"It is okay," She told him, because it was. Hadn't they known this was coming? Only a week. Still… "Okay?" She prodded, not good with people and trying to get him to talk, instead.

He sighed deeply, staring up at the ceiling with her. "It's okay, yeah. I mean, I know. I knew." He tugged his bottom lip between his teeth. "Still gonna hurt when you're gone, though."

She rolled over to look at him, patient, saying nothing.

"… You're my girlfriend?" He tried. She made an agreeable noise. "Aha." He smiled for a second, then frowned. "Sakura thinks you're suspicious… and, what if Gaara and Kankuro aren't okay with it? And, I want all my friends to like you! And, Shikamaru-"

Temari covered his mouth with her hand, her desert skin much darker than his. She thought for a moment while he peeked at her from the corner of his eye, looking anxious.

"… My brothers owe you a debt; they owe you their lives for what you have done for us. I do, too. And they love me. I know this. They will be happy for my happiness," She began, soothing him as well as herself. It was true, wasn't it? Her brothers loved her very much.

He reached up and plucked her hand up off his face. "Am I your happiness?"

"You are." He grinned. "If your friends do not like me," She began again, and his smile faded instantly, "Then we will just have to face that. If you are to tell them, and I am there, then… I will endeavour to be warmer," She tried, admitting to her own reticence.

He pressed her wrist to his mouth; not kissing it, merely keeping it there for a moment. "I like how serious you are," He said, eyes bright as he looked at her, making her heart thud. "You're so cool."

She pulled her wrist free of him, uncovering his large smile, back in place on his face. "If your friends feel some way about us," She said, addressing his last point in as vague a way as possible, "Then I will take my fan, and I will raise it up, and I will hit them with it."

Naruto, for a moment, gave her a look of perverse, animalistic pleasure. She knew the feeling; she'd felt just as pleased when he'd defended her against his own team mate. She wouldn't let him go without a fight, either.

The look changed into his warm, bright smile, and she couldn't help but smile, too.

"You're beautiful, Temari," He said, suddenly, as he turned a bit pink. She must have looked as shocked as she felt, because he continued on; "Your freckles are cute! And your eyes are pretty! And your teeth are cute, too! And your smile…" He inched closer, turning to her, and her vision was swimming with his big, blue eyes. "You have the best smile in the whole world."

' _Nonsense,'_ She thought to herself, running on auto. _'Your sun spots mark you a working woman. Your eyes are too dark to be very pretty. Your teeth are all crooked and you have a big gap in the front ones. People complain about your smile; it is too forced and makes your serious face look unpleasant.'_ These were what she knew to be true, because she'd heard them all before.

But her heart was jumping in her chest. Her stomach was in hot, sweaty knots of writhing, almost painful joy. Her blood was thrumming and racing through her, full of the knowledge that Uzumaki Naruto thought she was a beautiful girl.

"As beautiful as Ino?" She asked him, sounding much more hushed than she'd intended.

His nose touched hers. "More beautiful than Ino, than Sakura; than any girl I've ever seen," he promised, and he meant it, oh God, he must have meant it, because even her quick, clever mind knew that Uzumaki Naruto didn't go back on his word. His eyes closed, slowly, and she watched him kiss her gently.

He inched back again, and she was tingling, her face hot, her insides in twists. Slowly, she slid her empty hand up and crossed her eyes to look at it, waiting. Naruto smiled again, and some part of her thought _'my favourite'_ as she watched his lighter-coloured fingers come up through the gaps of hers, their palms pressing together as he squeezed her hand.

" _Am I your happiness?"_ She remembered him asking, just moments ago.

This proved it. Tip-toeing around had never made her feel this giddy. The build-up to this was nothing in the face of how it felt, right now, at that moment. Her eyes closed, and she pressed her thumb to the back of his hand, only brave enough to do this much as she murmured, quietly;

"You're my happiness."

—

The next day was a daze of fuzzy, giddy warmth. She woke up to their hands still linked, right in front of her face, neither of them changed for bed. She sat up slowly, keeping their hands together, and watched him wake. He saw her hand in his and promptly smacked it against his face, nuzzling it quickly before pulling it back again, inspecting it. After a moment, he'd satisfied himself and looked up at her, smiling, blue eyes dancing with hot excitement.

She laughed, and he smiled wider, his teeth showing. Then, he got up, using their linked hands to pull her up, too. They stood in his room for a moment, watching each other, before he pressed the back of her hand to his mouth again.

"I have to get ready to see you off," he said, seriously. She nodded. "You have to get ready to be seen off!" She nodded again, a smile twitching on her face. His lips smacked a loud kiss on her skin, making her laugh, before he dropped her hand and dashed off, out the door and, by the sounds of it, into the kitchen. She stared after him, baffled at his actions, his smile, but on fire with the joy of it all.

She showered slowly, and even the low-pressure, lukewarm water felt good today. She didn't mind drying off with one of his two threadbare towels, didn't feel half as bad about her frizzy, dry mess of hair as she put it up, didn't hate the sight of her dark sun spots as she dressed. Temari could hear him in the kitchen, probably making the last toast breakfast she'd have in a while, and she hummed an old children's song from deep in the desert as she packed her duffle. For a while longer, she could be as happy as he made her.

"Breakfast!" he said, triumphant, and slid over thickly cut bread, toasted and covered in a cheap, sugary jam. She ate both pieces while he showered and dressed. As he pulled out a ramen cup she stared at him, hard and disapproving. Naruto glanced up at her as he was about to open the plastic wrapping, then paused. "What?" He looked completely lost.

She narrowed her eyes slightly and pushed her crumb-covered plate towards him, getting up. Temari kept her narrowed gaze on him as she got to the fridge and pulled out the bread, fishing out two pieces. He cracked a smile.

"You're gonna make me breakfast, too?" She nodded briskly and broke eye contact with him when he started grinning, dashing around the counter to sit, ramen forgotten. "Okay! I'll sit right here!"

And he did, watching eagerly as they both waited for the toast to pop, as she smeared jam on his toast (when she held it up to him, questioningly, he asked for more) and then smeared it even thicker before presenting it to him.

It was slightly burnt. She hadn't factored in that his terrible toaster was already hot, and the bread already room temperature. Still, as she shelved the ramen cup for another day, he exclaimed over his first home-cooked breakfast from his 'girl', and ate it all, even the blackened crusts.

He carried her duffle for her. Their shoulders kept bumping as he leaned in close to whisper to her. His hands brushed hers so frequently it must have been deliberate. He hesitated only when he saw Shikamaru standing at the gate, and two boys looking surprised to see each other.

Temari hesitated, too, as she took her duffle from Naruto. Maybe she should have told him Shikamaru always saw her off, no matter how much she tried to weasel past him without his notice? Maybe she should have told him she didn't like him, in her own words.

She worried until he grinned at her, eyes bright, and then cheerfully waved an arm over his head, calling Shikamaru over. Shikamaru tried to address her, but, uninterested, she quickly said her goodbyes, Naruto keeping Shikamaru's attention on some inane chatter as she escaped. How useful boyfriends were!

"Temari?! Temari!"

She stopped short, whipping her head to the familiar voice. She smiled. "Ino. Hello."

Ino threw her arms around her. Temari chuckled, squeezing her waist quickly with her free arm. "Ohmigosh! I missed you! I can't believe it!"

"We will have to write," She said, as the bubbly woman pulled away.

Ino took her in, in one meticulous glance-over. "Something's happened," She said knowingly.

Temari paused. "… I have seen you, finally," She said.

Ino shook her head, screwing her face up. "Something's _happened!_ You're so happy! Oh, drat! You'll have to write to me, okay?! And tell me!"

Ino wouldn't keep her, knowing she had a deadline to report in to the boarder station. They waved each other off, and she was sure Ino and her team were greeting their remaining team mate with Naruto, and Temari hadn't even had to say his name. As she rushed through the lush, green forests, she thought of Ino, and how her letters were always safe with her. How she always kept her secrets.

' _There is little to tell, Ino,'_ She might write to her. _'I have simply found some happiness.'_

—

Days later, when she walked into her father's house and dropped her duffle in her childhood bedroom, she realised that maybe it wouldn't be so simple. Ino was so much cleverer than people gave her credit for; she would see through any simplification for sure, asking question after question until she knew all. Temari would have to tell her the truth, and all of it. Also… she just wanted to. She wanted Ino to know first. Before all the rest of his friends. Ino was her friend, too.

Kankuro was in his bedroom/workshop down the hall. She knocked and called through the door; "I've come back."

' _Welcome home! You stab anyone?"_

She laughed. "No."

" _Shame. Some of 'em could stand to."_

"Gaara?"

" _Room."_

She pat the wood between them (of course the Kazekage house had wooden doors), and left it at that, heading downstairs. She stopped at the basement door, made of solid iron. There were thick chains in some shelving just a few steps away, heavily warded, that Gaara insisted upon. He hadn't wanted to stay in the bedroom he'd grown up in any longer than necessary, but unfortunately, that only left the basement.

"Gaara?"

"Welcome home." She spun around, surprised to see her other little brother walking towards her, holding a mug. He rarely left his room when he was home, and, guiltily, Temari sometimes wondered if he knew that his siblings remembered when running into him in the halls was one of their worst nightmares. Gaara stopped when he was close enough and held out his hand expectantly, not looking at her, focused on the rim of his mug. It smelled like a soup.

"Not yet," She said, referring to her mission report. "Thank you, though. I'm back."

He went back to holding his mug with both hands, this time raising his head to look at her. After a moment, he squinted. After another, he shuffled forward a few steps, leaned in, and sniffed. Taken aback, Temari moved away slightly, giving him a look of confusion.

He probably didn't notice her bewilderment (a childhood of isolation meant he never noticed expressions very well), and went on, asking; "How is Naruto?"

Temari shrugged, glancing at his bedroom door. Solid iron, even though her brother was the least dangerous he'd ever been… "He's well." _'Better than well now,'_ She thought.

"You smell like him."

Temari blinked, slowly. She breathed deeply. "I'm not surprised. I do stay in his apartment whenever I'm in Konoha," She said, maybe too forcefully. Gaara wouldn't notice.

"You smell like him," Gaara said, again. "Could you move, please? This is too full."

That night, after she'd finished her mission report (she laid it out how Gaara preferred, not using her regular structure), she began drafting a letter to Ino. It was her turn, after all.

She curled up in her flat bed, mounted high with pillows, and began to draft her letter.

' _Ino, I didn't get to tell you this before, but I have grown romantically fond of Naruto-'_ She scribbled out the sentence, mumbling. Ino would come to Suna and slap her for being so unromantic. _'Ino, my friend, I have fallen in love-'_ She scribbled that line out, too. She was fond of him. Very fond. But it was not love. She didn't learn, through months, through every hardship, how to love her brothers just to use it so lightly. _'Did you know that I have spent my every visit as a guest in Naruto's apartment?'_ She scratched that one out with a vengeance. Not only admitting a deep secret, but also insulting her with a question she obviously wouldn't know the answer to? Stupid!

She groaned, slapped her hands over her face, then kept them there, thinking. What was she trying to tell Ino? That she was… happy. That she was with Naruto. She wanted to share her happiness with her dear friend.

She dropped her hands from her face, to the pen and paper, and tried again.

' _Ino, you were right; I am so very happy, my friend._

 _You don't know this, but I stay with Naruto in his apartment whenever I'm in Konoha. He welcomes me and my brothers into his home. He is a wonderful man. He begrudges me nothing; not my long silences, not my too-hot food, not my accent. He even gives up his bed for me. He even tells me I'm beautiful._

 _He makes me breakfast and talks with me, if I wish. He forces me to get out once in a while. He eats seafood ramen outside just because I hate the smell. He respects my thoughts and feelings; he thinks I'm one of the smartest women he's ever met. He sees my sun spots and crooked teeth and wide features and tells me I'm beautiful._

 _So yes, Ino, you were right; something_ has _happened, and I am so very happy it did.'_

She put the pen down, at a loss. What else was there to say? What else could she write. Her ears burned as she read through what she'd already written. She could write no more, embarrass herself no further, than this. Hurriedly, she filled out the first half of the scroll with astute, bland observations of her visit, commented on the pretty faces of the Konoha kunoichi she had seen. She remembered to add her encounter with Sakura, since she knew she was Ino's friend. Then, and only then, did she carefully copy down her half-jumbled declarations of affection.

She rolled up the scroll, sealed it, and systematically scribbled out the rough draft before ripping it out and screwing it up, throwing in into her paper bin. There. She had told Ino. Temari glanced over to the other scroll on her desk.

Now she just had to tell her brothers.

She took her time. She handed in her report. She sent Ino her letter. Kankuro showed her the new customisations he'd done to one of his old prosthetic legs, and she exclaimed over it appropriately. Gaara commented on how nice to read her mission report had been, and Temari quipped that leaving out potentially vital geographical changes must have been downright pleasant.

It the end, it just sort of… came out.

"Happy weekend!" Kankuro said to them cheerfully. "Who's got a date?" His siblings, notorious recluses, just regarded him blandly. "Me neither!" He said, all smiles, and slammed down his report scroll hard enough to crack the wood inside.

Temari rolled her eyes, reaching over and rubbing Kankuro's forearm. "You were too good for him," She said firmly, though she had no idea who this one was. Kankuro's temple met her shoulder, hard, and he sighed heavily.

"I know. I always am. I must be, since you always say that." Gaara reached out and took the broken scroll, eyeing it as he leaned back in his chair. Kankuro huffed out a laugh when Gaara turned a critical eye on him and straightened up. "Alright, alright. What do you two know, huh? You've never even been interested in any men!"

' _I have!'_ Temari thought, fiercely, and Gaara shrugged, saying lightly; "There's not a man in this whole village who would have me."

' _And what would Kankuro know, anyway,'_ Temari went on to herself, overthinking as usual and drowning out Kankuro's reply of: "Well, we'll just have to look _outside_ Suna! What about that ugly friend of yours in Konoha?" Gaara made a firmly negative sound.

" _Naruto_ isn't ugly," She stressed to herself, knowing Kankuro meant Rock lee, who Temari knew he was slightly afraid of. No one who could beat Gaara sat right with Kankuro.

"I was _not_ talking about him; so why are you?" Temari drew in a quick breath, her eyes darting from brother to brother as she panicked. She hadn't meant to say that. She hadn't meant to be _heard_ , at least!

"He's one of Gaara's friends," She said, as Gaara replied;

"Because she smelled like him when she got back."

"What?" His older siblings asked at the same time.

Gaara looked from one to the other, before settling on his sister. "… That _is_ why you smelled like him, isn't it?" He prodded, like that was a reasonable thing to ask a person.

It seemed a more serious question than Temari understood it as. "That depends… on what "smelling" like him means," She replied, carefully. Kankuro was silent, but she could tell his theatrically-trained eyes were boring into her.

Gaara didn't seem to know how to answer that at first; he paused, frowning in thought, before clasping his hands together and resting his chin there. His siblings didn't rush him. Gaara was still figuring out a lot of things. "… It means that he smells like you too. Does that make you happy?"

She still didn't know what he meant. She wanted to ask again, but she felt Gaara couldn't explain it any better, and Kankuro was still just staring at her, just watching, waiting…

Well. She was supposed to be the smartest one among them. " _He_ makes me happy," She clarified quietly.

Kankuro guffawed, and when Temari turned sharply to regard him, he straightened up, grinning. Gaara's attention had been drawn back to the wooden scroll core Kankuro had broken, as if he found nothing interesting about a conversation he already knew everything about.

"How much shorter than you is this guy?!" Kankuro demanded, obviously delighted. "You've gotta have like a head on him!"

Temari struggled not to grin and fixed her brother with a shrewd look. "Oh? Is Mr. Can't Catch A Date himself going to lecture me about my choice of men?"

Kankuro's jaw dropped. Then he reached out a smacked her arm, hard, and she responded by hurling a punch at his side that he didn't block properly, making him yell, and she yelled, too, when he suddenly grabbed her around the middle and knocked her off-balance.

"You two can just go now. Just get out," Gaara said to them, flicking the end of the broken scroll core at them, which bounced harmlessly off of Kankuro's arm as he scooped her up over his shoulder and started carrying her off, an unrepentant 'Sorry, Gaara!' their little brother's only farewell. After a brief struggle, where she managed to knee Kankuro in the gut, Temari rolled off his shoulder and pulled the door shut behind them, heading home together.

"No, but seriously, how do you even kiss him? Don't you have to get down on your knees to reach him or something?"

Temari hit him again, overjoyed at their easy acceptance of her happiness. Kankuro still had some teasing to get out of his system; with the only one of them with any relationship experience, he was more than happy to lord it over her. The only reason he stopped, it seemed, was because Gaara caught his only mostly-serious action- giving her a box of one-size-fits-all condoms -to which he simply said; "Bigger."

Temari had some things to say about _that_ , but Kankuro immediately launched into a sexual education lesson right in their main hallway, demonstrating to Gaara how to roll down a condom properly. The next time she caught her youngest brother, he was assigning her to carry the finalised trade route agreements to Konoha for one last check-over with the Hokage, and she promptly forgot about any questions at all in her giddy excitement.

Externally, she accepted it with a stiff nod and then turned to leave, but Gaara stopped her. "Temari."

She glanced back to him. "Yes?"

His green eyes bore into hers. She couldn't help but remember something Kankuro had said once; 'Suna emeralds come in two variations. And I get to see them right there in my sibling's faces.'

"Are you happy?" Gaara asked her quietly.

She paused, thinking about Kankuro's jokes and all the questions Gaara suddenly had, about Naruto's easy smiles and infectious laughter.

She gave him a small, private smile. "I am."


	3. A Worry

_He Makes Me Laugh_

* * *

She looked the picture of calm, walking confidently up to Konoha's village gates. One of the gate guards was already waiting for her to sign in, and she saw why almost immediately; two spots of orange and purple were standing side-by-side. Her heart soared.

Then it plummeted. Ino probably hadn't had time to write back to her last letter; a three-week turnaround was usually the norm for them. Naruto… had Ino told Naruto? Had Naruto told anyone? Suddenly nervous, her heart clenched with caution, and she focused on filling out the sign-in sheet she was handed.

She handed it back promptly but turned around slowly. Ino and Naruto were both grinning, which made her relax somewhat. Ino was glancing at Naruto continuously, looking about ready to burst out of her skin, but Naruto only had eyes for her. Temari felt insides grow warm at the open fondness, the warmth in his big blue eyes. She strode to him quickly and he grabbed her hands, obviously overjoyed.

"Temari!" Was all he could say, energy practically vibrating off of him, tense with excitement.

"Naruto," She returned.

"Temari," Ino whined, looking thrilled and also impatient.

"Ino," She said as well, nodding smartly. Surreptitiously, she glanced around, alert for a third person. "Shikamaru?" She asked, looking at Ino.

The woman smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "Not today. Let's go!" Ino led the charge, and Naruto followed after her, hooking his arm in Temari's and making her laugh quietly as she was led. Through crowded streets and markets, past shop windows and stalls, Temari followed her two most important people in the village without complaint. Naruto kept glancing at her, his eyes dancing, and it kept the warmth in her belly stoked. Ino would spin around and call out to them from time to time, beautiful and bright, and Temari would walk quicker for her, lengthening her stride to keep up with her.

Between the two of them, the fondness welling up inside of her, Temari wasn't surprised that Konoha was more beautiful today then she could ever remember.

They stopped at Naruto's apartment to drop off Temari's bags, and Ino rounded on him almost instantly, berating him for the mess, the size, the smell that never left. Naruto defended himself valiantly, pointing out several of his own marks on the place, the hook for a punching bag on the roof, the multiple tack and kunai marks on the walls. Ino just got on his case about not caring for a rental property properly, and how could he let Temari sleep in a pigsty like this?

Temari heard little actual heat in their words, and went deeper into the apartment, heading towards Naruto's bedroom. She saw he'd already thrown his sleeping cap and pyjamas on the couch. She debated it for a moment, before scooping them up and dumping them, along with her duffle, on the bed.

She strode out, feeling very satisfied, and called out to the pair still bickering; "Take me out to eat."

Ino paused, Naruto grinned at her, and they started ushering her outside, talking over each other as they asked her what she felt like. She smiled at them, as well as she was able. Having them both together was better than she could have ever dreamed of.

—

Ino would make a brilliant interrogator.

"So when did this all happen? Before or after Temari and I became friends? Was it before? Is that why you never told me, despite the fact you're both my friends?" She fired off rapidly, leaving Naruto blinking in uneasy confusion and Temari sucking her bottom lip somewhat guiltily. "I mean; I love you guys _soo much!_ I'm so happy for you! Now, tell me everything," She said, in a smiling tone that brooked no argument.

Temari wanted to let Naruto do the talking, but she felt compelled to stop him, put a hand on his arm when he opened his mouth. He looked to her for a moment before shutting it again. She nodded to him, and addressed Ino.

"My friend, for all this time, ever since I have first started coming to this country, I have been fond if this man," She said to her. Ino clapped, looking starry-eyed, before she tucked her hands under her chin to listen with rapt attention. Temari noticed that Naruto, too, rested a fist against his cheek and watched her, waiting. She swallowed and continued; "I, uh… I have always been looking forward to him. Talking to him. Speaking with him." She paused, and took a deep breath, locking eyes on Ino's wistful expression. "… He makes me laugh," She said, quietly, and felt herself smiling. "And Ino, it is very beautiful."

She saw movement in the corner of her eye and jerked to face it, but Naruto's warm, wide hands caught her face gently and he kissed her. Temari saw his gold hair through hooded eyes as he pulled away after a chaste, passionate moment.

"Sorry," He said, wide-eyed wonder in his big blue eyes as he stared at her. "I got excited."

Temari didn't know what to do about that, but then Ino squealed in delight at such a romantic action, and Naruto gave her a cheesy, bashful grin, and Temari laughed again. It was so easy to laugh with these two. She never would have dreamed of sitting in a restaurant, able to eat her fill, with her best friend and her boyfriend, who were not only from Konoha, but ninja who protected it. Baby Temari would have spat at anyone who suggested such a thing.

"Naruto! You too! Tell me how you fell in love with our beautiful Temari of the desert!" Ino demanded, slamming a hand down on the table. Naruto spluttered, his face turning redder than the sash around Temari's middle, but Temari just reached for her tea and took a loud slurp. Naruto glanced over at her, almost shy. She put the cup down and watched him in return.

Naruto gave her a small nod and looked back at Ino, cheeks flushed. "You know, when we went with her, to go save Gaara… I realised I could fall in love with her." His face was getting redder, but Temari felt as if her heart was about to burst. A hungry little desert girl had no energy to be daydreaming of such love, and it took her breath away. "Mostly because… because she knew Gaara, knew what he was, and still she was willing to die for him. To love him. I thought maybe… y'know. Maybe."

Temari reached over and pat his hand, since he had turned his face away from her in embarrassment. Ino looked absolutely thrilled. She was probably ecstatic Naruto was capable of such romanticism. Temari, for her part, wasn't shocked. Of course Naruto was capable of such things. When it came to expressing himself, Naruto was one of the most capable men she'd ever met.

Ino was more than happy to ignore Naruto's protests and order for all of them, which set off another round of arguing between them. Temari watched from the sidelines; it just really seemed like they enjoyed bickering with each other. She was glad they got along. She didn't know what she'd do if they didn't.

She ate what Ino ordered her- something chicken, hot and spicy, too much plain pepper for her liking, but Ino and Naruto both insisted on a forkful anyway. Naruto had udon. Ino had spaghetti. They talked more often than those around them; a stark contrast to how Temari took public meals with her brothers, with Suna culture filling in the space between bites with conversation, while her relations ate quickly and left soon after.

Naruto paid, Ino cooing teasingly over his gentlemanly behaviour, and Temari left first, conscious of the crowded restaurant, and waited outside. Ino rushed to her and linked arms, and Temari was content to let herself be led again, but then Naruto came up to her other side and took her hand, and she was conscious of how much room they took up, the three of them side-by-side. She wanted to pull away, embarrassed by such a public display; but from who? She debated this dilemma all the way to Ino's shop, where Ino broke off and told them to head straight home as she happily hopped upstairs. Temari made sure to smile at her, grateful that her conflict had been resolved.

As she walked on with Naruto, hand in hand, towards his apartment, he pressed his mouth to her hairline. It was a dark enough aide road that she didn't mind it. "Sorry," he breathed against her skin. "I know you don't like being the centre of attention, but maybe if it's just me and Ino, it's okay? Could you stand that?"

He pulled away, his face waiting anxiously for her reply. She looked him over slowly; he'd guessed her discomfort. She considered what he'd asked of her thoughtfully, mulling over her affections and warm feelings for them both and weighing it against her own desires. They would be known, now. Maybe someone saw today. Naruto was a well-liked man nowadays, and though public attention she was used to, she hadn't enjoyed it.

It really had been awful, hadn't it? There was a thought. What did she want out of this? Out of them? It felt more real, with Ino knowing. Her mind racing, she continued that train of thought carefully.

"… I will see," She said out aloud to him, nodding to herself. Naruto beamed, obviously thrilled with her consideration.

"C'mon," He said, excitedly, "C'mon, I wanna show you something!"

He pulled her quickly towards his apartment, almost tugging her arm out its socket. She laughed quietly. She had no idea she'd be willing to compromise for a man who wasn't either of her brothers, but it made her wonder; how far would her willingness go, and how far would his?

He led her to his darkened room and proudly indicated to the camp bed he'd crammed in sometime during their late lunch. He'd probably used a clone. "I was thinking we could sleep in the same room, maybe," He said, in a rush, nervously awaiting her response.

"No," She said calmly, "I won't allow this." His face dropped, and she waited a cruel moment before adding; "You'll share a bed with me or nothing at all." He whipped his face up to her, wide-eyed. She pressed her lips together and didn't laugh at him. "I will not bite." She shifted over to him a half-step and pressed her mouth to his hard jawline. "Not yet."

He shivered. Temari decided she liked that.

—

Naturally, a clever woman like Temari had more motives than simply allowing the man she was affectionate of closer to her. He made a point of laying out some of his sleeping clothes over her duffle, and she made a point of wearing only the shirt. Despite his growth spurt, the hem didn't cover her underwear, and she neatly folded the track pants and put them away in a drawer. Teeth brushed at her insistence, Naruto returned to find Temari already between the covers, reading a book she'd found in his kitchen.

"Sakura lent me that," He said cheerfully, sitting on the edge of the bed. "I tried to read it, but it's really- hmm," He cut himself off, looking troubled as she threw the corner of the sheets back and pat the mattress beside her. Or maybe it was the glimpse of her bare thigh.

She looked at him, and he dropped his head and crawled over to her, shuffling in. He tried to give her some space, but his tiny bed was too small for such nonsense, and she lay her head against his shoulder to stop his fidgeting.

"Are you not worried?" She asked him suddenly. she'd hardly been reading; she was too stuck on compromises, and the public, and all the implications. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him look at her. "I am worried," She admitted. "I will not leave Suna. It is my home; I was born there, I will live there, and I will die on the sands of my country." She craned her neck back, to look at him. "And what of you? You love Konoha; I cannot imagine you'd leave it, just as I cannot imagine I could leave Suna, even for you." Suddenly, all her new fears came rushing out, her brow furrowing. She dropped her gaze back to the book and continued;

"What of this? I cannot ask you to leave fire country, and I will not leave the desert. Now, now it seems easy, very simple just to visit, but what about later? When we are too old to travel such a distance, what then? I cannot live in this country," She insisted, feeling upset. "I cannot. Suna is my home. My brothers are my home. I could never leave them; when I was here, and Gaara was taken, I felt as if I would die. I swore I would never leave Suna again, never leave his side, and for months I did not. Naruto, I cannot-" She looked to him sharply, suspicious of what she thought she could see him doing. "What are you smiling?" She demanded, baring her teeth in outrage.

"Temari… you wanna grow old with me?" He asked, looking equal parts mystified and thrilled.

She blinked. "I imagine so; why else would I even bother with all this-? That is not important," She said, impatiently. "What happens will happen, but if we are to continue, then I must know-"

"I want to grow old with you," Naruto said suddenly, excited. "I do! Even when we're old and wrinkly, I want us to be together!" His eyes were bright, as bright as his smile, and Temari had to pause at that, because it was her turn to be mystified now. "What if I go bald?" He asked her, grinning.

Still taken aback by his cheer, she answered anyway. "That's a lot to ask of anyone." She felt her mouth twitch when he groaned dramatically.

"Well, I guess we'll have to see if my hairline starts receding, huh?" He joked, but he radiated glee. He dug his heels into the mattress and started pulling himself down to lay against a pillow, smiling. "I think it'll be fun," He continued, yanking the sheets up to his chin. "because I bet you'll be a super-hot old lady, so I bet all the other grandpas will be super jealous of me!"

Temari stared down at him, face blank, before tossing the book over him, onto the floor, and shuffling down beside him. "You are not concerned?" She asked him quietly.

He reached down and grabbed her book, then hurled it at the light switch; it hit, and he pumped his fist as the room was plunged into darkness. "Why should I be?" He asked lightly, rolling over to face her. With the window at her back, his eyes caught the streetlight outside, still shining even now. "You just said you wanted to grow old with me."

Temari watched him a moment longer, then, scoffing, curled into him. His hand bumped against her, his fingers finding her waist, her shoulder, following down her arm to her wrist. It left hot trails against her skin. He took her hand.

She worried; she couldn't help the cold stress of their future together. What if the treaty between Konoha and Suna fell apart again? What if it didn't, and she aged, loving him, and could no longer muster the strength to see him? She would die years, she imagined, without seeing his face. What if they didn't work out, and it was bitter, and ruined relations between their countries? It could be an international incident. How dreadful that sounded. How sad.

Yet he… here was Naruto; stuck on the fact she wondered what would happen if she grew old with him. Happy. Overjoyed with the thought of it. She could feel his breath against her forehead, his hand loose on hers. He was thrilled at the thought of growing old with her.

' _It's not so hard a thought,'_ She contented herself with, getting drowsy. _'Spending my whole life with him would obviously be full of all the joy he could give me.'_

* * *

 **Notes:** To clear up some confusion from this chapter; Temari is the kind of woman who worries about the future, and Naruto's the kinda guy who always looks on the bright side, and that makes Temari happy.


	4. An End

_He Makes Me Laugh_

 **Notes:** I can't believe it... done! Thanks all for sticking around so long!

* * *

She woke up with a headache. It surprised her a little; not because she was unused to it (she was very used to it), but because she hadn't even started her diplomatic negotiations. It normally took a couple days of hard-headed insistences on both sides before she woke up with such a sore head.

She tasted the sleep in her mouth as she pulled herself up. She frowned for a moment; something wasn't right-? The next instant, her hand shot down, and she grabbed the arm around her waist while the other flew to under her pillow where- her hunting knife wasn't there?

"Temari." She stilled. "Temari, it's me. Naruto. Can you let go of my arm? It kinda hurts." She let go. He sat up. "Wow. You're so fast!" He was smiling, bright as always.

Temari relaxed. "You did not feel like Kankuro," She explained. The last time they'd slept together had been an accident, and Naruto had done nothing but hold her hand. Kankuro was the only man she'd ever shared a bed with, and that was because she often missed him, holed up with his fellow puppeteers and their arts. She would come into his room at night and lay with him, and he'd snuggle up with her. They were used to only having each other.

Having a man who wasn't her brother hold her was… different.

Temari eyed the arm still across her lap. Naruto then made to move it, but she grabbed his wrist lightly, and he left it there. "You do not feel like Kankuro," She noted again, quietly.

"Yeah? Is it bad?"

"No," She said, and dropped her hand from his wrist.

"Oh, good!" He moved his arm off her anyway, but not before squeezing her hip. _That_ felt absolutely nothing like her brother. "Hey, you wanna come with me to the library? Sakura says she needs my help!" Naruto puffed himself up, looking proud.

Temari thought that maybe Sakura needed someone to get books off high shelves for her, given that she was very petite. "You think she would not mind?"

"Nah; Sakura's cool." A glint in Naruto's eye seemed to be teasing her; like he knew that she was worried that his friend wouldn't like her, and he knew something she didn't. "C'mon! Let's get going!"

"Brush your teeth," She ordered, as she pulled herself out of bed. She had considered growing old with him. She might as well trust him on this one.

—

At first, Temari thought the Konoha library must be bigger than Suna's, before she discovered it didn't extend underground. She had to check her ambassador's pass with some security Chuunin, but apart from that she strode on beside Naruto without much worry, easily keeping up to his energetic strides.

"Let's see," He said quietly; Temari had just reminded him this was a library, after all. "We were gonna meet in the back part, with all the wind jutsu stu- uuff?" Naruto trailed off into a questioning sound of disbelief, and Temari peered over his shoulder. Then paused.

His friend Sakura was engaged in some rather passionate liplock with a taller, broader boy she quickly recognised as Inuzuka Kiba, her brother's Konoha friend.

Kiba had Sakura pressed up against some shelves, his greater bulk holding her against him. Sakura had one hand tangled in his hair, the other sliding down the back of his jacket. It looked like they were trying to devour each other.

Kiba pulled back first, staring at them with wide eyes, and Sakura noticed them with a squeak, immediately fishing her arm out of Kiba's jacket and stepping away. Kiba let her make some distance between their bodies, but his arm stayed around her waist. At first, Temari thought the hand she put on his arm was trying to push him away, but then realised she was just touching him. She didn't mind it.

Naruto, it seemed, was busy gloating, so Temari ignored him to study the young couple in love. "Well well weeell," Naruto drawled out. "What do we have here? Huh? Kiba, you dog!" he accused suddenly, pointing, but his tone was gleeful, and despite the embarrassed looks of outrage they were getting, to Temari, it felt like the time he'd bickered with Ino yesterday.

Sakura looked indignant and opened her mouth, but then Kiba's arms flexed under his jacket sleeves. She glanced up at him, rubbed his arm, and settled for glaring daggers at Naruto. Evidently, she trusted him.

"Fuck you doing, you goddamn pervert," Kiba barked back. "Just gonna be a peepin' tom when people're tryin' to have a private conversation. You little creep."

Naruto squawked at that. "Hey! Sakura! Find a new guy! This one's too rude!"

Sakura stomped her foot then. She actually stomped _on_ Kiba's, but he winced and bit his lip without making a sound. Naruto let out a low 'ooh' in sympathy. "Naruto, you big creep! This is just like the bath houses all over again!"

"I'll have you know that guy, right there, dared me!" Naruto said immediately.

"I didn't think you'd actually _do_ it, you snitch!" Kiba exclaimed, then looked down at Sakura, who was now scowling up at him suspiciously. "He wasn't supposed to _actually_ do it!"

"You are peeking at woman's baths?" Temari asked her boyfriend, causing him to startle, and the other pair to notice her.

"Um…" He fidgeted. "Not anymore?"

She narrowed her eyes and sucked her teeth, and Naruto hung his head, her displeasure accurately received.

"Anyway, you gonna help Sakura with this new growin' method or not?" Kiba called, and Temari noticed that Sakura was still safely nestled in his arms, and her hands were still on him, resting against his chest. She decided that the novelty of catching two people kissing had worn off, and their continued touching was too intimate for her liking. She averted her eyes to the rows of book spines.

"Yeah, yeah; hey, Sakura, why am I here if dog breath's already helping you out?" Temari was more surprised to learn that apparently, they were just going to move on from that little yelling match. That seemed to be how it was done in Konoha. It was all resolved now.

Shaking her head, she followed after Naruto, who reached back to snag her hand, unnoticed by the pair next to him, who had their arms around each other. Temari decided hand-holding was the lesser of two evils and allowed it.

When they left the shelving, Naruto dropped her hand again, and Sakura led them all to her set-up. It was covered in books, notes, and various loose-leaf papers. "I'm gonna send you both off in different directions," She said with a shrug. "Or, Kiba will get me a book, and you'll show me your wind chakra. We'll see how it goes." Kiba let Sakura leave his arm and sit in the middle of all that chaos, standing close while she issued orders.

Naruto gave Temari a bright smile as he strode off to do what he was told, but the desert woman hadn't been told anything, so she sat down across from Sakura, who glanced up and gave her a smile. "Hey," She greeted.

Temari nodded in response, and Sakura returned to her notes, copying something out of one of the thick books, her other hand propping her head up lazily. "… You are studying wind chakra?"

Sakura sprung to life, propping her chin up with a fist and explaining, face animated; "Yes! It's actually in collaboration with Suna, so maybe you've heard of it, but ever since I made that antidote for Kankuro, we've been wondering about plant life in Suna, and how we can help it along more for vital times like that, so we've decided to start with seed dispersal!" Her eyes were shining. It was obviously a topic of great interest for her.

Temari had heard Kankuro mention something of the sort to Gaara, so she nodded. "I also have wind nature," She said, and offered; "If needed, you might study mine."

Sakura gave her another warm smile. She was quite pretty, when she wasn't giving her suspicious looks. Her soft little features and bubbly femininity were much sweeter, cuter than Temari's hard mannerisms. "Oh, I can't ask you to do that! Naruto's got such huge stores of it; I know it's no drain on him."

Since it was such a thoughtful refusal, Temari wasn't afraid to offer again; "Then maybe, when Naruto is showing you his nature, I will help find books."

Sakura seemed thrilled. "That would be a huge help! Thank you so much!"

Temari only nodded again. She wondered if maybe, after her _conversation_ between the bookshelves, Sakura had relaxed her guard. Temari then wondered if _she'd_ let her guard down after kissing Naruto in such a way, and wasn't in a rush to find out.

—

Watching them come and go, Temari noticed that her boyfriend and Sakura's (lover? Boyfriend? She didn't know how to ask the medic) were not just a pair of loud, exuberant, almost animalistic men; they were also built the same. Temari could appreciate Kiba's broad hands and firm rear. Sakura seemed to notice them as well, considering how often she brushed her fingers over the backs of his hands and pinched his ass. He'd throw her a quick wink whenever she did that, and Sakura, judging by how she giggled about it, enjoyed that, too.

Temari watched as the trio laughed and teased each other and talked with an amiability foreign to her. She put her chin in her hand and watched as Naruto showed the tiny woman his chakra, Kiba leaned over her chair to watch. She'd never had friends her own age, and her meet-ups with Ino were never as long as either of them would like. She felt intrusive, watching their familiarity.

Then, Naruto looked up at her and smiled, and she forgot her self-consciousness quickly.

As Naruto and Kiba were sent off to do Sakura's bidding, the girl looked up at her shyly. "Naruto's told me a lot about you."

"Yes," Temari acknowledged. Naruto told everyone about a lot of things.

She looked away, nibbling her bottom lip. "He… explained things. To me. About you." Temari nodded. She didn't really know where this was going. "I'm sorry." Oh. That's where this was going.

"There is no fault," She said to the younger woman. When Sakura looked ready to argue that, Temari went on; "I too am guilty of overprotectiveness with my own brothers."

Sakura blinked, then smiled. She looked very cute that way. Temari could see what all the fuss was about. "Okay!" She seemed even more cheerful after that, and Temari was amused by how much that incident must've been weighing on her. She was a good, cute girl.

They left after only an hour. Naruto and Kiba goofing off in the shelving meant it was taking too long for Sakura to get her books, and they were soundly kicked out.

"You just wanna kiss your _boyfriend,_ " Naruto cooed at her, and then yelled when Sakura hurled a book at him. They left quickly, Naruto laughing loudly as they went and everyone else glaring at them for it.

Temari wasn't used to this side of him. Of course, she glimpsed it once or twice, in the way he argued with Ino, in the easy way he always spoke, but they'd almost always interacted in private, or between the two of them; Temari hadn't seen him in a group since he'd come with reinforcements to save her brother from the Akatsuki. He was a man who lived off of his interactions with his friends. Temari had never known such a thing.

"She is good to you," She said to him, quietly. Naruto glanced up at her. He'd led her off, avoiding crowded main streets for empty shop fronts. There was no one else on this road. "Sakura," She went on.

"Oh, yeah! She's like, like…" He flapped his hands and wet his lips, trying to express something he had no words for. "Like my best friend, or something!" He grinned at her. "Do you like her? She's nice, right?"

Temari dipped her head, and he seemed relieved, too. It wasn't her place, to point out how close to her heart Sakura viewed him. She was still learning what 'family' meant herself.

She noticed that he kept glancing at her; more specifically, her hand. She turned her wrist out and spread her fingers. Naruto, smiling, grabbed it with no more hesitation. There was a bounce in his step as they walked now, hand-in-hand. She let him tug her along. His good mood was infectious; she always felt happier when he was happy.

She was staring at the linked hands, because Naruto had started stroking the back of her palm with his thumb, and it was very distracting, so when Naruto suddenly paused, she bumped into his shoulder. She looked up at him, and saw his humour was gone; he was tense, staring ahead of them with apprehension. She glanced over.

Shikamaru and Ino were right in front of them.

"Ino," She called, "Hello."

"Hi, Temari…" Ino said, glancing from her to her team mate. Temari made a point of staring only at Ino. The mood was soured now, and Temari was more than upset. A few more moments, and she would've given Naruto a kiss. "What're you two doing here?"

She looked at Naruto, and he was silent, his mouth shut tight. He didn't seem like he would answer. If anything, he seemed… angry. Frowning, she replied for them; "We are coming from the library. We are helping Sakura, but now we are here."

"Oh… oh, uh, we're actually heading to the library, too! You know Sakura; leave her with her boyfriend for more than a minute and they're all, like, lovey-dovey! It's so embarrassing, I mean, really, he's all over her, like a puppy, or something; I guess that's why they call it puppy-love, huh-!" Ino laughed, but it sounded higher-pitched than Temari was used to.

"Mm," She grunted, looking back at Naruto again. His eyes were a little wider; she felt a twinge, deep in her gut, and remembered how a wide-eyed Gaara had once crushed a twenty-man scouting party for daring to step on Suna's deserts.

Temari lifted their linked hands and squeezed. His face jerked towards her. She thought that maybe his eyes were a little red. "We caught them," She said to him. "Sakura and Kiba. They were kissing, yes?"

"Mm-hmm," He hummed in agreement. "In the shelves…" He grinned a little, but his eyes didn't look quite right. "Pair of lovebirds."

She smiled at him, but her face wasn't made for smiling, and she stopped quickly. "We are going somewhere now?"

If anything, Naruto's eyes got darker. He squeezed her hand back, and it almost hurt. "Lunch." He whipped his head to the two across from them. "Will you come with us?" His tone was odd; it reminded her of how Gaara had once, casually, asked her and Kankuro to check for any survivors of a 100-metre Sand Coffin he'd performed in the cliffs.

"No," Shikamaru said, sharply.

"We've got to go see Sakura!" Ino put in immediately. "So we'll- I'll see you around, right Temari?" Temari nodded at her. Ino grabbed Shikamaru's arm and heaved; they rushed passed them, and Temari didn't glance back at them to wave.

"… Well," Temari said, a few moments later, after the two of them were long gone. "That went well, I think."

"Mm." Naruto cleared his throat. She waited until he let out a long, slow breath. "It… happened."

She looked over to him then. He was worrying at his lip, a frown forming. "Tell me," She said, quietly. He was the one who talked, between the two of them, so she waited.

"I'm sorry I'm so jealous he looked so _betrayed_ like I'd _done_ something I didn't! And- I didn't!" He looked at her, wide-eyed, and Temari saw that he looked more harrowed by it than his anger before. "He's not the only man allowed to love you."

Temari blinked, slowly. Love… "You could say he is the only man _not_ allowed to love me," She said, then smiled again. She stopped quickly, because he seemed so torn. It made her feel warm, though. He was a man who loved his friends, and loved them dearly; it obviously pained him, having Shikamaru look at him in a way she hadn't seen.

Yet he hadn't given her up. It made her feel so warm. She still had their linked hands raised, and she brought it to her mouth. She kissed the back of his hand. She couldn't help it. She was woman of Suna, and she liked how far he would fight for her.

Suddenly, he leaned against her, and she stumbled a step as his head hit hard against her shoulder. She winced, but squeezed their joined hands in sympathy. It must've been exhausting; a man who loved his friends so, having to hurt one of them. She felt him settle his other hand against her waist, and allowed it.

"Lunch?" He asked her, weakly.

Temari chuckled. "Lunch," She agreed. But still, they stood there, Naruto with his head against her shoulder, and Temari supporting him. She decided to give him a few minutes. He was a good man; he probably needed the time, to come to terms with how their happiness would change things.

"Temari, I like you," He said, voice quiet.

"As I like you."

"I like your freckles and your teeth and your smile. And I like sleeping in the same bed as you, even if you grab my arm really tight. And I like making you breakfast, and I like eating the breakfast you make for me." She didn't know what to say. Her face was burning. She squeezed his hand tighter. "And I know that you're worried about politics, and time, and all this stuff I can't even imagine, but I'm excited, 'cause I like you so much.

"I like how smart you are. I like how you don't talk all that much. I like that Ino likes you so much, and that Sakura's starting to like you, too." She dropped her face into his neck, embarrassed, mortified at how light and over the moon his words made her feel. "I like that you can't express yourself too well. It's cute. You're cute."

He fell silent, and they stood there, leaning against each other. She wondered, frantically, if she should say something back. If he wanted her to acknowledge his words, or to brush them off, or anything. She didn't know what to do; in the face of his feelings, all her smarts left her in an instant.

"Temari?" He asked her.

"Yes," She said hoarsely. There was something in her throat, and she couldn't seem to swallow it down.

She felt his breath against her skin as he asked her; "What do you like about me?"

She swallowed and lifted his face from her shoulder. After a moment, he straightened up, too, and peered at her flushed face. His eyes were bright, and loving, and she was too busy trying not to drown in them to speak.

He was smiling.

She felt something bubbling up her throat. Her heart? Her joy? She didn't know. It felt like everything she had, and more. Everything she had, and all he could give her. His bright smiles, his easy way with people, the way he ate the seafood ramen she hated where she couldn't smell it. The way he set all her fears to rest. How he ate the toast she burned for him and liked it. How he put her at ease, even when he walked with her in public and held her hand for all to see. Her brothers were as fond of him as he was of them. He looked at her sun spots and awkward tan lines and dry, brittle hair, and thought she was cute. She closed her eyes.

"You make me laugh."

When she opened them again, it was to his eyes wide and his lips parted, surprise evident. Then, before she could see it coming, he scooped her up and hauled her against him, his strong arms around her waist the only thing keeping her upright as she shrieked, scrabbling for a hold on his shoulders as he whooped loudly and spun her around in circles. Her throat was still so full, and this light-hearted moment, overwhelming in its joy, sent her over the edge. She couldn't help it.

She laughed.


End file.
